Bloom Of A Forest
by Exiled Sage
Summary: Life and death were dualities. Complete opposites of one another. Neither could exist without the other. And it was true for magic as well. While the Black Wizard Zeref possesses the power to take lives, a child by the name of Naruto Uzumaki possesses the power to create. An eternal conflict between the two forces shall come into light as the representations of both forces fight.
1. Chapter 1

**Bloom of A Forest**

 **Chapter 1: The Child Of Thorns**

The Grand Magic Games, a wonderful time for both wizards and civilians alike. An event held every year in the capital city of Fiore, Crocus. Thousands of eccentric fans and hopeful wizards flocked to the city. Each year the crowd grew larger and larger leading to more and more business in the city. First introduced by the King as an event for gathering Guilds to compete with one another, not a single soul outside of the King's council knew of the game's true purpose. With peaceful times and the rise of a new empire, the economy was on the decline. With assistance from the Magic Council, the creation of the Grand Magic Games ensured a boom in the economy, and a way to quell the amnesty of Guilds. Using the games as a way to vent out frustration and rage towards one another, avoiding damage to the kingdom. It was a wonderful idea. With healthy competition between Guilds, the numbers of participants exponentially increased while the games gained popularity over the course of a single year.

Not a single soul in Fiore could deny the excitement of watching the competitions. With the battle of mages followed up by games that brought forth dazzling displays of magic from every participant, it was no surprise the King himself enjoyed the games. Every year, Guilds would fight for the glory of victory. Infatuation with possible fame from the games appealed to a vast number of wizards. The glory of becoming Fiore's strongest Guild attracted even the weakest of Guilds, ensuring a vast number of participants each year. Among the game's short life, a number of Guilds had taken the position as the strongest. Though none of them ever held onto their position as strongest for long, a single Guild had managed to destroy the cycle. Obtaining the position as the strongest for two years running without a single obstacle in their way, Sabertooth's future was glowing with opportunity.

Sabertooth started off as a small guild that followed the principles adapted from a number of guilds. With the arrival of a group of S-Class Mages, Sabertooth bloomed. Fairy Tail, the strongest guild from before vanished from the spotlight, allowing Sabertooth to sweep in and take the position as the strongest for themselves. Plowing through guild after guild under the leadership of a new Guild Master, Sabertooth was at an all time high. No guilds had came close to defeating them in their years of dominance over the Grand Magic Games. Lamia Scale a guild only second to Sabertooth possessed strong enough members to prove a threat. With the addition of Jura Neekis a Wizard Saint, Lamia Scale was stronger than ever with such a powerhouse in their ranks. Yet Sabertooth did not worry. Lamia Scale had their trump card and they had theirs. It was only a matter of time before it was revealed to the world.

* * *

In the bustling city of Crocus guilds from all over the Kingdom of Fiore gathered, giddy with excitement. The Grand Magic Games were underway, with one hundred and thirteen participating guilds taking up residence in the city, excitement flooded the air. Following the amassing guilds, thousands of fans flocked to the city. Among the large mass of hopeful guilds, Fairy Tail, a guild who had their position and fame years ago were a part of the hopeful numbers. With their lost members back, hope that had been long forgotten was reignited and thus the campaign for the title as the strongest guild began. From the top, they fell and now Fairy Tail was at the bottom. Once notorious for their destructive tendencies, Fairy Tail was now infamous for always placing last in the Grand Magic Games. And now, here they were, in the kingdom's capital with hopes of regaining their lost glory. This year, Fairy Tail had sent another team to participate in the beloved event.

"Natsu! Slow down! You're going to bump into someone!" The warning that escaped Lucy Heartfillia's lips reached deaf ears as her directed audience ignored her without a care in the world.

Natsu Dragneel, a youth with a lean build and a patch of wild salmon red hair cackled in delight as he ran through the busy streets of Crocus. Following him in a joyous chase was his ever loyal friend and partner, Happy the blue Exceed gliding through the air. Unbeknownst to the oblivious duo, the young salmon-haired mage had done exactly what Lucy had warned him of, crashing into an innocent bystander. Colliding in a heep, Natsu tumbled to the ground as he tangled with his victim when the collision had brought them down. Grunts from both respective parties had drawn the attention of a number of bystanders along with the worried Exceed and Heartfillia.

"Natsu, I told you to be careful!" Lucy berated as she approached the grounded duo, hastily pulling Natsu away from his victim. "I'm sorry sir! Natsu apologize!"

Eyeing the victim of Natsu's childishness, Lucy noted a number of prominent features. With a set of spiky blonde hair much like her own, a pair of bright blue eyes locked onto hers. The stranger pushed himself off of the uneven cobblestone floor and brushed the dust that now was clinging onto his clothes. Finishing his small task, the other blonde turned to Lucy and gave her a smile.

"Eh, no need to say sorry." the stranger replied as he extended his hand. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki."

"Lucy Heartfillia, it is nice to meet you, Naruto!" Lucy said in a cheerful tone.

"I'm Natsu, sorry about that." Natsu said as he gave Naruto a cheeky grin after Lucy had prompted him to apologize in the form of a jab from her elbow.

"Ah, Natsu Dragneel?" Naruto asked as a slight smile overtook his features. Receiving only a nod followed by a questioning expression, Naruto continued with the same smile, "My brother used to be a big fan of yours, Salamander. He had a thing for Dragon Slayers."

"Eh, I have fans?" Natsu muttered as he scratched his head.

Before the question from Natsu could be answered, the clock tower struck noon as a bell rang through the city. Turning his attention towards the source of the ringing, Naruto's eyebrows rose as a thought crossed his mind. Though the ringing of the clock had little meaning to both the Fairy Tail mages, Naruto had an appointment to keep.

"I have to ago, Natsu, Lucy. I'm already late." Naruto said as he gave both Fairy Tail mages a wave. "Good luck in the Grand Magic Games!"

Like that, Naruto left the duo in the circle of bystanders vanishing into the wave of people. The ring of bystanders that had been watching in relative silence began dispersing though not without speaking their mind on the event that had just occurred.

"Looks like Fairy Tail is gonna be in the Games this year."

"Bet they're gonna be in last place like every other year."

"My money's on Sabertooth winning it again."

"I heard Sabertooth is going to have a new member participate."

"If he or she is as strong as the Twin Dragons then Guilds like Fairy Tail don't stand a chance."

* * *

Calming strolling through the streets of Crocus, Naruto hummed a cheerful toon, ignoring the pairs of eyes that were staring at him. His little walk had taken him further away from the edges of Crocus and closer to the area of wealth in the city. Strolling past lavish homes built for aristocrats, Naruto never stopped to admire the beautiful works of architecture built before him. Minutes passed as he finally stopped before a large imposing building that was built much like a hotel. With multiple stories and an open space surrounded by plots of flowers, the building held no distinction other than it's size compared to it's surrounding neighbors. The gates blocking unwelcomed guests from entering swung open as the guard gave Naruto a startled look.

"Naruto, you are early. The other members have not arrived yet." The guard asked.

"Eh? Well since they aren't here then I will go see the castle for myself." Naruto responded with a smile.

"Of course, I'd happily take that bag for you, Naruto."

"Thanks, Ishiki! I will be leaving for Mercurius then. Tell the other's I'll be cheering for them in the sidelines!"

Waving to the guard as he departed from the gates, Naruto's walk towards Mercurius began. It was a relatively short distance to the castle. Located at the center of Crocus on an island surrounded by a lake of water, the castle was a sight to behold. With a set of grand white pillars and light purple roofing, the castle had a number of towers that rose to the sky, towering over the other buildings erected around it. It did not take long for Naruto to see the castle as he approached the lake. It was large enough for anyone to notice from outside of Crocus. Weaving through the crowd of awed tourists, Naruto approached the Rune Knights standing before the path that connected to the moat leading into the extravagant castle. Though entry into the palace's gardens was open to everyone, guards were still posted in key areas surrounding the castle in case of any threats tot he royal family residing on the inside.

Crossing the moat with his sights on the garden dubbed as the most beautiful in the entire Kingdom, Naruto could not help himself as his movements were hastened in order to quell his excitement. Nature was a fascinating topic for the blonde, as a boy, he had grown up in the forests of Fiore learning to appreciate the beauty of the land. There were two key factors in his love for nature, the most obvious one being his environment when growing up, and his second was his magic. His magic was irregular compared to the modern day magic that dominated the markets and guilds. Like a number of mages, his magic was often seen as a form of "Lost Magic". Lost Magic, was forms of magic that had been developed in the past that, like its name suggested, was lost. No longer holding the knowledge on the workings of some forms of magic, they were dubbed as Lost Magic. His magic was more commonly classified as Plant Magic. Though it was commonly referred to as Plant Magic or at times Green Magic, Naruto's name for it was Mokuton (Wood Release).

Mokuton, was a form of magic that allowed the user to accelerate the growth of plants. Unlike Green Magic that allowed the caster to manipulate nature at a minuscule level, Mokuton's ability to utilise nature for offensive capabilities was far more powerful. Mokuton was a rare form of magic that had requirements that needed to be met in order for it's true powers to bloom. For one, the user had to hold a powerful source of magic in their body. To manipulate nature itself required a large quantity of magic to do, a regular magicians pool of magic was far too little to utilize the Mokuton in it's fullest. The other requirement considered the most important, was a connection to nature. The closer one was to nature, the more powerful Mokuton became.

Naruto followed the crowd through the well-tended gardens as his senses flared to life. Surrounded by beautiful flowers and exotic trees, Naruto was truly at lost for words. Preserved at extraordinary degrees, the garden was comparable to heaven for the blonde. The tourists oohing and awwing in the distant had broken him free from his trance prompting the blonde to continue exploring the lush gardens. Green blades of grass glimmered under the sun as the droplets of water sparkled under the light. Trees stood proudly as the branches shrouded in a mist of leaves provided spots of shade. Wooden benches with sat surrounding a large stone fountain gushing out torrents of gentle water. Though Naruto liked the tourist, he wished for silence when enjoying such a wonderful garden. Breaking away from the group and heading into the maze that the green hedges created, Naruto was keen on finding silence among the flurry of sound. Navigating the maze was quite easy, allowing his senses to guide him drowning out the voices as he progressed deeper and deeper into the maze.

Time passed slowly as Naruto finally found himself standing before an iron gate chained and locked to keep intruders out. Written neatly on a wooden sigh that hanged over the gate was the message, "Do not enter!". Though the sign clearly meant to keep tourists out of the section of the castle most likely reserved for the royal family, Naruto's curiosity had gotten the better of him. Clamoring over the iron gate without much of an issue, Naruto ignored the crackle of the chain as he landed on the other side of the gate. Continuing on his exploration of the garden, a newfound curiosity accompanying him along the way. Weaving through the maze without a clear goal in mind, Naruto soon found himself exiting the maze and entering a small garden hidden by the shadow of the castle. Growing under the warmth of the enchanting sunlight, a patch of green orchids glistened. Surrounding the flowers were a number of trees creating a circular formation around the patch. A wooden bench was placed before the flowers with age obvious in its construction.

Though the garden was not as sophisticated and beautiful as the garden allowed by the public, it still held a certain charm the other garden did not possess. Standing there under the warm embrace of the sun, Naruto closed his eyes and allowed his senses to abduct him. As a user of Mokuton, his appreciation of nature was almost like a religion. The closer he was to nature, the more powerful his manipulation of it became. Though his eyes were closed, he could see the shimmer of life resonating from the plants all around him.

* * *

Hisui E. Fiore was a complete wreck. As the princess of the Kingdom, she had a number of responsibilities that were tied to her name and position. The royal life was nothing like the people imagined. The joyous life of being a princess was nothing more than an illusion. True, she had everything a normal girl would kill for, but it was nothing more than useless in her eyes. Born with everything in her hands, it quickly turned into a bore for the princess. Desire was something everyone possessed. While Hisui wished for the life of a common girl, people wished for her life, one full of lavishes and pleasures of the aristocrat life. Every day was a struggle, and now, with a new threat looming over the Kingdom, it was now her responsibility to protect her subjects. Whenever life became too stressful for the young princess, she would escape into the gardens of Mercurius. Not the one that attracted the attention of tourists, the garden that she had grown to love since her childhood. The garden that she had played in her younger years hidden away from the prying eyes of others.

Swiftly gliding down the halls of Mercurius, guards and servants bowed lowly to the princess as she headed towards the less traveled part of the castle. Escaping the confinements of the stone walls and into the embrace of the sun's light, Hisui moved towards the small patch of vegetation which signified the beginning of her own sanctuary. Boots clapping against the paved cobblestone floor, Hisui's widened in a mixture of shock and anger. Standing there in her beloved sanctuary showering in the sun's light was a blonde with a serene smile plastered on his tanned face. Stomping towards the intruder with a scowl plastered onto her delicate features, the princess was keen on giving the blonde a piece of her mind. Intruding into the castle was one thing. But, to invade her sanctuary when she was having a bad day was what broke the straw on the camels back.

"What do you think you're doing here!" Hisui snapped as she stomped towards the blonde.

"Eh? I'm just looking at the plants. It's obvious-" Naruto never got to finish as another growl from the green-haired girl cut him off mid sentence.

"You aren't supposed to be here... Unless... Guards! There is a thief in the garden!"

"Wait! You don't understand! I-"

"I understand perfectly! You are here to steal from the royal family!"

As Hisui directed an accusing finger at Naruto, the blonde was quick to hold his arms up in surrender. The rhythmic crunch of boots pounding against stone tiles soon became audible. Sweating profoundly as he attempted to defuse the situation that had cycled out of control, Naruto could see the shadows of Rune Knights approaching their location. Mind racing as further attempts to explain his presence in the garden fell on deaf ears as the green-haired girl was accepting none of his pleas. Not seconds later, the entire garden was swarmed with guards armed with wick sharp spears all pointing in his direction. Arms still up in surrender, Naruto could only give the guards and princess a nervous chuckle as he stood there cursing his curiosity.

"Arrest him! He is-" Hisui ordered to no avail.

"Wait! I'm not here to steal anything!" Naruto exclaimed in protest as he waved his arms around frantically attempting to explain his reasons for trespassing. "I just got... lost. Yeah, lost!"

Even Naruto had to facepalm at his own lie. Considering the amount of blank stares he was receiving from the guards and more importantly princess, Naruto could safely conclude they did not believe him either. The frantic words he had uttered only made him seem more suspicious. Holding his face in his hands, Naruto groaned as he realized how much worse he had made of the situation. At critical times similar to the one he was in, his mouth had never been his most reliant feature. Somehow, Naruto was able to make bad situations much worse than they already were.

"Guards! Arrest him!" Hisui commanded in a huff.

"No! Wait! Listen, I'm a mage in the Grand Magic Games!" Naruto wailed as he backed further toward the end of the garden with a small army of guards following with spears keen on skewering him into a shishkabob.

Once again his words fell on deaf ears as the guards slowly approached him with raised spears and stern expressions. There was little to no possible way for him to escape without any crucial punishment dealt to himself. He was now forced to choose between two evils. Escape the guards and have the army after him or allow himself to get arrested and feel the wrath of the old bastard. Both options had their pros and cons, neither seemed to hold a definite edge over the other. Yet he had to decide soon. Then again, there was a third option. Let the princess turn him into a human pincushion. Choices choices.

"Look here princess. I'm not a thief!"

"That's exactly what a thief would say!"

Like before, all Naruto could do was groan. Hisui was making this extremely difficult for him. It seemed she was not in the best of moods and with his invasion of her mother's garden, things were infinitely harder. Situations such as these, the guards were to trust either his word or Hisui's. It was obvious they were going to listen to the princess they served. He was not looking forward to going to jail. Breaking and entering the castle Mercurius was one thing, if he was forced to escape and make it back to the hotel, then his punishment would be much worse. There was also the possibility of him accepting defeat and getting arrested now and being late while receiving some form of punishment later.

"Hahahaha! Let me handle this for you princess! I will have him melt under my acid!" The booming voice of an approaching figure filled the small garden.

Walking out of the shadows of the castle a burly man with a patch of style dirty blonde hair on his head. A bottle of soda was clamped against his teeth as his slightly narrowed eyes tilted in a look of glee. With overly muscular arms and a triangular nose, the man looked odd yet Naruto could feel magic escape the man. A degree stronger than the princess's.

"Neppa. Arrest this thief!" Hisui commanded as she agreed with the words of the executioner wholeheartedly.

"Can't we just talk this out?" Naruto said as he furthered himself from the approaching mage. Before he sent a small glare at the princess, "And for the last time, I am not a thief!"

"Liar!"

"I'm not lying!"

"Yes, you are!"

"No, I'm not!"

"Then why are you this section of the castle?!"

"Uh... I got... Curious?"

"Arrest him!"

"Oh come on! I wasn't lying this time!"

As the mage Neppa followed by the small army of guards swarmed him, Naruto could not help himself as he groaned once again. If he fought, his punishment would be exponentially increased and his image would decrease by a similar amount. Why did situations like these always happen to him?

* * *

Naruto was among the cheering of the adoring fans in the sea of faces occupying the seats around the coliseum where the Grand Magic Games were being held. Beside him was an elderly man with an extremely muscular physique and tendrils of spiky white hair tied into a ponytail. The man's beard jutted outwards in an untamed fashion similar to his mustache seated above his lip. With sunken eyes, the man gave off an intimidating appearance that went well with his personality. Arms crossed and eyes glaring at the participants of the event, Naruto looked around and noticed the distance between them and the other observers. The man who was scaring off a number of onlookers was Jiemma, the current Guild Master of Sabertooth. A man who valued strength overall, it was obvious how he had brought Sabertooth out of the shadows of the other larger Guilds. His philosophy of the strong devouring the weak had done wonders on Sabertooth, though for the better or worse Naruto could not say.

"If you were to participate then this would end much faster, Naruto. I don't see why you refuse to fight when you show great promise with your magic... Unlike the other weaklings..." Jiemma said as his gruff tone caught the blonde's attention.

"I don't like fighting, you know that," Naruto muttered as a frown crawled onto his face, "Besides, I have confidence in my comrades to win. Yukino-chan has been practicing since day one, I'm sure she will do great."

"She better. The guild has no room for weaklings. You introduced her to the guild so if she fails, then you will be on the line as well..."

"Hmph, whatever you say..."

No more words were exchanged as the two turned their attention towards the coliseum as the eight teams began filing out of their respective entrances. Jiemma found nothing interesting about the six Guilds thus far, but, Naruto seemed to be pleasantly surprised Fairy Tail had managed to make it through the maze. Holding nothing against the Guild that had fallen, Naruto could see Jiemma scoff about their position. Landing at last place among the other eight Guilds, Naruto simply smiled. The fire that Fairy Tail possessed since their glory days were showing as none of the five cared for the jeers and boos sent their way. As the other Guilds were announced and the crowd showered them in cheers, the Guild which placed second caused mass confusion among the crowd as well as Naruto and Jiemma.

A second Fairy Tail team.

"More weaklings to add to the pile. How fitting." Jiemma scoffed.

"You're not concerned? Fairy Tail now has two teams competing in the Games..." Naruto pointed out with a raised brow.

"Ten pitiful fairys for the tigers to devour."

"..."

"As expected, Sabertooth is in 1st place."

Naruto merely ignored Jiemma's words as he returned his attention to his comrades. Giving an encourage smile at Yukino, the newest member in the Guild, Naruto was graced with a confident smile. Yukino, was a well-endowed young woman with short silver hair framing her face and a set of fierce brown eyes. Covered in a cloak of white feathers, Yukino's revealing outfit managed to draw a number of looks from men all around the coliseum. Beside Yukino, were the Twin Dragons, Sting Eucliffe the White Dragon Slayer and Rogue Cheney the Shadow Dragon Slayer. Behind the three with smirks on both their faces were the Lighting God Slayer Orga Nanagear and Rufus Lore, the Memory Make Mage.

As the event known as Hidden, was announced to the cheering crowds, Jiemma's neutral expression focused solely on the representative of Sabertooth. Rufus Lore, the man was known for his prowess in utilizing his memories for combat stood tall as he looked at the other representatives with a smirk. Juvia Lockser of Fairy Tail B, Beth Vanderwood of Mermaid Heel, Eve Tearm of Blue Pegasus, Nullpudding of Raven Tail, Lyon Vastia of Lamia Scale, and lastly, Gray Fullbuster of Fairy Tail A.

As rules were read aloud to the gathered crowd and anxious participants, Naruto could see the exchange of words between the representatives. Soon enough, an entire city rose from a magic circle that had formed beneath all the participants. Following the rise of a city, copies of the participants formed in all areas of the town. With the rules set and participants in place, the bang of a gong filled the coliseum and thus the event began. Rushing into action, all of the participants went their separate ways as the elimination of other Guilds started. Rufus however, did not hide amongst his copies made by the event planners. Hopping onto the roof of the tallest building, Rufus stayed there watching the action unfold with a smirk still plastered on his face. With a number of points being generated by some participants, Rufus assumed a stance and held an arm out. The area soon darkened around him and a brilliant yellow light consumed his body and soon enough an array of beams shot from his body. Scattering and changing their trajectory, the beams struck all seven of the participants granting Rufus the lead position.

Time was ticking away quickly as the other participants scrambled to score some points or regain their former positions on the scoreboard. A number of attacks had been directed at Rufus who merely utilized another one of his spells to avoid the loss of his points. What surprised Naruto the most about the event was that Nullpudding, a member of Raven Tail, had turned on Gray Fullbuster even though he had a chance of striking Rufus. Finally, as the timer struck zero, the town had dispersed leaving behind the eight participants of the event. With Sabertooth claiming first place once again, and gaining ten points, Rufus walked away from the cheering crowd, making his way towards the booth his teammates occupied.

"Raven Tail is only targeting Fairy Tail..." Naruto observed with a slight frown hitching at his lips.

"It matters not," Jiemma muttered before his eyes narrowed, "What is with your sudden interest in Fairy Tail?"

"Nothing to worry about..."

Standing up from his seat, Naruto walked out of the coliseum. Jiemma paid him no attention as his eyes remained on the match between Fairy Tail and Raven Tail.

* * *

It wasn't long before Naruto's stroll through the quiet city ended. Crocus was comparable to a ghost town with the Grand Magic Games taking place at the moment. With the popularity of the games, it was obvious stores and other establishments would be closed down in order to either view the events unfold live or on screen through Lacerima. Finding himself at a park, Naruto seated himself on a wooden bench and released a sigh of content. Escaping the loud cheers that commonly filled the coliseum, the serene silence of the park was a far cry of joy. He never found himself enjoying the violence that so many others loved.

Pulling out a book nestled safely under his jacket, Naruto's eyes stared longingly at the aging book. The black cover that once shown under the sun's enchanting embrace was now torn in various areas. The black leather began losing color over the years he had kept it. Embedded in the center of the book was a symbol that had slowly began fading. Even though it was partially gone, Naruto could still make it out. It was no ordinary symbol, it was the symbol of the Alvarez Empire. Yellow pages that were once white had a number of tears in them, though inconsistent, Naruto's displeasure of the book's state was obvious. No matter how careful he was with the book, time had beaten all his attempts in maintaining the book's elegance. Though it was damaged, the contents inside remained as clear as the day he had read it. Looking like nothing more than junk from a forgotten age, it was the most precious item Naruto possessed. A gift from his savior. A gift from Spriggan.

 **Chapter end**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed. I always wanted to make Naruto a member of Sabertooth, so I went and did it. I really have nothing to say aside from leave a review and tell me what you think. Suggestions are all welcomed! Thanks for reading.**

 **S~**


	2. NOTICE

**Notice!**

 **Sorry for the lack of updates or anything. I have decided to update all of my stories and release this notice. I am moving onto a new profile because for the past few weeks I keep on getting 503 errors, "no servers to process request" notices for anything I attempt to do. I had to write this damn notice six times before it actually saved! When I try to post stories or updates, yeah, that is what happens. I am sick of it, so I attempted to email someone with no response so far. I will be making a new profile to see if these issues keep appearing. If they do not, I will be writing new stories and taking challenges on my new profile, Forever Exiled. My brother will man this profile, and if you guys have requests as to what story I should write then please PM my new profile.**

 **E~**


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